By Vinny Porco

In the 2026 SGA elections, 11 out of the 14 candidates either endorsed or “recommended” by U of L’s chapter of the Young Democratic Socialists of America won seats in their respective races.

YDSA is the student arm of a national group known as the Democratic Socialists of America. Chapters in both secondary and higher education institutions organize around the political ideology of democratic socialism as well as significant democratization.

On Wednesday, April 8, The Louisville Cardinal sat down with three members of U of L’s YDSA chapter. Electoral Committee Co-Chair Cyrus Campbell joined newly-elected senators Peyton DeWitt and Ciarán Bowden in discussing organizational functions and recent electoral success.

Election results, first reported on March 30 by The Louisville Cardinal, seemed to reflect a shift with respect to outcomes from previous years. While YDSA’s success was a surprise to many, to the people that made it happen, it was a satisfying culmination of months of hard work.

How It Started

This hard work began in Fall 2025 when an Arts and Sciences Senator position came open mid-semester. A Special Election was to be held by the A&S Senate late-September 2025, and U of L YDSA looked to get their foot in the door.

At a general body meeting, the organization voted freshman Peyton DeWitt as their candidate of choice. DeWitt would run on behalf of YDSA, and agreed to a list of commitments he would uphold if elected. The list included issues like divestment from Israel, House Bill 4 compliance and university-wide democratization.

The organization-wide campaign effort kicked off shortly after DeWitt was chosen.

“Everybody was doing all that they could,” he recalled. “We were out tabling every day. People were printing stuff. People were making stuff on social media. Everybody was sharing things.”

But after several days of campaigning, DeWitt was informed he would not be allowed to run. An email sent to him the evening of Sept. 26 by A&S Senate leadership stated that he was not allowed to run in the election due to being a first-semester Freshman.

DeWitt told The Cardinal that YDSA members were upset at the disqualification, a decision that gave the organization only three days to find a new candidate and only one weekday to campaign on campus.

The organization quickly held an emergency vote, deciding over the weekend to run YDSA member Conner Leszkai in place of DeWitt. Despite an intense subsequent campaign effort, Leszkai placed second in the election behind current A&S Vice President-elect Addison Ricafort.

Bowden, DeWitt and Campbell told The Cardinal that this Fall 2025 loss emboldened YDSA in its electoral push in the 2026 SGA Election.

Seeking Success

The most recent election cycle saw ramped-up participation from YDSA, with the organization voting to support the candidacy of four members instead of one. Bowden and DeWitt were joined in the A&S Senate race by Schuyler Stone, and Kingston Painter ran unopposed for the Kent School of Social Work’s senate seat.

To earn endorsements from YDSA, the four candidates went through a democratized voting process that took place in the organization’s general body.

First and foremost, all candidates pledged to uphold a list of commitments extended from the Fall 2025 list. The list still included divestment from Israel, but also expanded the issues of democratization and House Bill 4 compliance.

As part of YDSA’s democratization commitment, the organization will look to ban the use of secret ballots within SGA. This comes after a controversial Spring 2025 incident in which the SGA Senate voted against a divestment resolution using a secret ballot in front of a crowd of student protestors.

The group also intends to push the implementation of referendums that would poll students on new student fees.

On the front of House Bill 4 compliance, the group now uses “Sanctuary Campus” as a blanket term comprising their goals. They envision creating a more inclusive campus free of Flock cameras and ICE enforcement among other things.

Bowden told The Cardinal that all four candidates also individually “made their case” to YDSA members. This included Stone, who spent the Spring 2026 semester studying abroad in China.

“Schuyler called in from China,” Bowden said. “It was 7 a.m. for him and he called in. He made his case.”

After debate within the YDSA Electoral Committee, the organization also decided to “recommend” a number of candidates. YDSA bylaws dictate that candidates who are not dues-paying members cannot be officially endorsed.

DeWitt called the decision to recommend other candidates “pragmatic.” With nine total seats in the A&S Senate, the group recommended six other candidates vetted as progressive by the committee, as well as a candidate for each “Top 4” position. 

These recommendations, as well as YDSA’s four endorsements were announced via a “Voter Guide” posted on the organization’s Instagram page.

A voter guide for the 2026 SGA General Election posted by U of L’s YDSA chapter on Feb. 23, 2026. (Image Courtesy / U of L YDSA)

YDSA’s efforts were rewarded when results were announced on March 30. Eight out of nine candidates endorsed or recommended by YDSA for A&S Senate won seats. With the inclusion of Painter, this made for a success rate of 90% with senators. 

Candidates for student body president and executive vice president, Yash Arabati and Riley Maddox, also won their respective races, adding to the success of YDSA’s “recommended” group.

Additionally, participation in the A&S Senate race rose 39.52% from 620 votes cast in 2025 to 865 in 2026.

Outlook

Looking ahead, the three YDSA members told The Cardinal about the obstacles they expected come Fall 2026.

Bowden discussed being grateful for what he called a “swing to the left,” but said he anticipates a struggle with U of L administration when it comes to some of the group’s larger goals.

“At the end of the day, we have no true say,” he said. “All of the things that we do are suggestions.”

DeWitt, on the other hand, emphasized a potential struggle within SGA.

“We’re preparing for people who are apathetic, don’t care or actively going to work against us,” he said.

YDSA’s work is far from over, but for now, Campbell, DeWitt and Bowden are proud of the election outcome.

Bowden ended the April 8 interview with optimism around increased participation in both voting and YDSA’s campaign effort.

“I’m very happy and proud to see how many people have been putting in the work.”

Photo by Vinny Porco / The Louisville Cardinal